Draft rigging



Aug. 28, 1934. N. B. AKlTT 1,971,953

DRAFT RIGGING Filed July 19, 1928 2 Sheets-Sheet l Qwoentoz A Orman 63 17%77 N. B. AKITT DRAFT RIGGING Aug. 28, 1934.

Filed July 19, 1928 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Qwwmtoc War/7700 5 if??? Patented Aug. 28, 1934 res DRAFT RIGGING Norman B. Akitt lltochester, N. Y., assignor p The Symington .CompansgNew York, N. Y., a corporationpf Maryland 7 ApplicationfJuly 19, 1928, Serial No; 293,999

10 Claims.

This invention relates to railway draft rigging and more particularly'to the connection between couplers and yokes whereby angling of said couplers in all directions upon the application of draft and buffing forces is'permitted.

The principal object of my invention generally considered is to provide a simplified connection between the. coupler. and yoke inrailway draft 1 rigging whereby horizontal and vertical angling of said coupler is permitted at all'times without theuse of additionalor more complicated elementsithan those ordinarily employed.

"Another object of my invention is to provide a swivel butt coupler construction in which the shank of the. coupler is provided with a clearance slot for a' horizontal connectingkey, said key being formedwith a concave bearing notch in the rear edge-and the butt of the shank being formed with a verticalspool portion, the front half of said spoolcontacting the notch inthe key for permitting horizontal angling of the coupler on draft and the rearihalf contactingaconcave bearing portion formed on or disposed forwardly of the associatedfront follower.

,A-further object ofamy inventionis toprovide a coupler and yoke connection permitting angling therebetween, said connection involving a horizontal draft. key extending through registering slots in said coupler and yoke, the rear ,edge of said key having a curved bearing notch engagedby a cooperatively curved spoolportion on the coupler permitting horizontal angling of said coupler, vertical angling thereof being permitted by .thefclearance between the ends oflthekey and the slots in the yoke receiving said key, a.

front follower being disposedrearwardlyof said coupler butt and formed with a concave bearin portion engaging the rearportion or the spool of the coupler butt whereby angling of .said coupler. is permitted, notonly upon the application of draft forces but alsoun'der theaction of bufli'ng forces.

A still further object of I myinvention is-theprovision of a swivel butt coupleras'previously referred to, in which the connecting key between said coupler and yoke is prevented from undesired removal by a vertical pin disposed'forwardly thereof and partially closing the slot in the coupler, sufficient clearance, however, beingprovided to permit the, desired angling of said key with respect to said coupler. p, i o

An additionaljobject of my invention is to'pro vide a key forconnecting a couplerand yoke and permitting angling therebetween, which key is coupler.

relating to the particular arrangement and conthe associated yoke; 5. o is shown as of 'a vertical type with upper .Referring to the; drawings illustrating my in-' vention, the sketch whereof is defined in'the'appendedclaims: i

Figure 1 is a horizontal sectional view on the line 1- -1 of Figure 2, looking the direction of the arrows and illustrating the portion of rail Way draft rigging embodying my invention.

' Figure z is a vertical sectional viewon the line 2--2 of Figure'l looking in the direction of the arrows. j.

Figures 3" and 4 are views corresponding re-- spectively to Figures 1 and 2 but showing a modi-' fi'cation." g f Figure 5 isa front elevation ofa front follower such asshown in Figures 3 and 4 but slightly modified. I

Figure .6 is a side elevation of the follower shown in Figure 5 with the front bearing portion or block detached therefrom. 1 3

Referring to the drawings in detail, like parts being designated by like reference charactersyand.

' first considering the embodiment ofmy invention illustrated in Figures land 2, a por'tionof railway'draftrigging is disclosed'involvinga coupler l-with a rearwardly'extending shankportion 2 formed with aslot'3 receiving a horizontal key 4 operatively connecting said coupler 1 with Although said yoke and lower arms 6 and 7'joined at their forward portions by side'webs-or walls 8, slotted at 9 for receiving the ends of the'key 4,1 do not 'wishto be liinitedto avertical yoke. g I The slot'3 in the coupler stem'z is formed sufficiently long toper'mit the assembly' of the key 4- therein, said key,- it will be noted, beingof special formin that it has"'af concave bearing notch 10 in therear edge thereof which notch normally receives the vertical, preferably cylindrical, spool portionllgcomprising the butt;of the coupler shank 2.; 'The spool has a preferably uniform curvature corresponding with and complementary. to the curvature of the bearing notch 10 in the keyso that horizontal angling between said stem; or shank and key is permitted; aswill be under stood;

On account of therearward e tensions iZ on I the key. defining the 'curved notch therein .a. rel-' ativelyflong slot3 is necessary in the. coupler shank for permitting insertion of;said key. In order, however, to prevent undesired removal of said. key 4 from the snanka'retainer is provided, which in the'present embodiment takes the form,

of avertical pin 13 headed at its ,upper end and passing through the slotted portion ofthe shank to the coupler, so as to restrict the length of said slot;

and cooperate with the rearward extensionslZ in preventing undesired removal of the key,whi1e.at

forces is permitted.

In order to effectively transmit draft forces from the butt of the coupler 1 to the associated cushioning mechanism illustrated diagrammatically by'dot and dash lines at 15 afront follower 16 is provided between the butt or spool portion 11 of the coupler and said cushioning mechanism. Formed on thelfront face of said follower 16 is a forward projection 1'? formed with a front bearing notch or pocket 18 concavely curved to correspond with the curvature of the coupler spool portion 11. Although said extension providing the bearing on the front of the follower 16 is shown integral with said follower, I do not wish to be limited to said showing as, if desired, it may be formed separate from and connected thereto in any desiredmanner as illus trated in Figures 5 and 6 to be described hereinafter. I

Although the spool portion 11 on the coupler stem preferably has uniform curvature on its front and rear portions yet the curvature of the rear portion may be different from, or less than that of the front portion, if desired, in accordance with Figures 3 and 4. Although the curvature of the spool portion 11 and the corresponding bearing pocket 18 on the follower extension 17 are shown cylindrical thereby providing for horizontal angling only between the parts yet, if desired,

1 it may be formed spherical as illustrated in Figures 3 and 4, tobe hereinafter described, whereby universal angling between the coupler butt and said follower upon the application of bufling Theoperation ofmy aforedescribed draft rigging is as follows: Upon theapplication of draft forces the said forces are transmitted from the spool portion 11 of the coupler through the key 4 to the yoke 5 and from there through the cushioning mechanism 15 to ordinary or desired front draft lugs (not shown) on the center or draft sills "(not shown) of the car. The butt' of the coupler pulls away from the bearing pocket on the front of the follower 16 so that the necessary angling of the coupler takes place only between the engaged front portion of the spool 11 and the rear curved edge ,10 of the key4 Vertical angling on. draft is permitted by the clearance betweenv the key 4 and the slots 9 inthe sides 8 of the yoke, said key angling on its front edge in the slots 9 of the yoke.

1 Upon the application of buffing forces are transmitted directly from the butt of the coupler to the front follower 16 and through the cushioning mechanism to the rear follower.

and rear draft lugs (not shown) or any other means for transmitting such forces to the asso ciated draft sills (not shown) of the car. As the cushioning mechanism 15 is compressed the, en-

gagement between the couplerspool 11 and the key 4 is broken and said coupler is permitted to angle with respect vto the abutting frontfollower' extension 1'7. c

Althoughonly horizontal angling is especially provided for, vertical angling may be permitted to a slight extent by rocking of thefront' fol-.

lower 16 or rocking on the extension thereof or,

as previously mentioned, the engaging surfaces between the parts may be madesphericalas illustrated in Figures 3 and 4. V

forces such,

Referring now to the embodiment of my invention illustrated in Figures 3 and 4, the construction as here disclosed is very similar to that 'of Figures 1 and 2, except that provision is'made especially for universal angling of the .coupler in all directions under the influence of "both draft and buffing forces.

a bearing notch 10a receiving the vertical spool portion 11a of the coupler butt, and thereby permitting horizontal angling between said coupler and key. l

In order to increase the bearing area between, the key and spool portion 11a without greatly increasing the weight of the key, said key is preferablyfor-med tapering or provided with rearwardly diverging upper'fan'd lower walls so that it is,thicker adjacent its rear edge. than adjacent its forward edge. The associated follower 16a"is,,asi n,the previous embodiment, formed with a "forward extension 17a, the frontface of which has a concave spherical pocket 18a receiving the correspondingly curved 'butt portion 1% of the coupler. The curvature of the'rear portion 19a is preferably less than that of the forward portion, whereby the effective bearing area is increased, and the diameter is main-' tained greater, or at least not less than the greater transverse dimensionof the coupler stem, in ,this instance the height. In orderto facilitate vertical angling between the parts the slots 9a in the yoke are formed with suflicient clear ance with respect to the ends of the key 411 so that they do not interfere with a limited amount of vertical angling which may be desired. The

instead of the follower 16a of the, previous em bodiment, said follower, instead of havingan integralextension thereon, has a separable bearingmember 17b, the front of which is recessed to provide a concave spherical bearingpocket 181;. for receiving the butt of an associated' coupler as in the previous embodiment.

The, separable extension 17b may be connected to the front face of the follower 16b in' any desired manner as by means of integrally ta pering pins2l received with a drivingflt in corresponding pockets 22 in the front face of the follower 16b. Otherwise the construction of the followerand associated parts may correspond with that'of the previous'embodiment.

" From the foregoing disclosure it will be seen that I have. provided a swivelbutt coupler'in' which horizontal swivelling is permitted by the special formation of. the shankv butt andycon necting draftkeybetween said shank and the associated yoke; vertical swivelling on draft be ingpermitted by clearance between the ends of the key and the yoke slots and swivelling on buff being permitted by the engagement of the coupler butt in a pocket formed on the front of spool portion, a yoke, a horizontal draft key the associated follower which alternatively freely permits horizontal or universal angling of said coupler.

I claim:

1. In railway draft rigging, in combination, a coupler with a rearwardly extending shank, the butt of said shank being formed with a vertical spool portion, a yoke, a horizontal draft key extending through registering slots in the shank of said coupler and said yoke, said key being notched and the front half of the spool portion on the coupler shank contacting the notched portion of the key, and a front follower engaging the rear portion of said spool and formed with a concave bearing portion curved to correspond with the curvature of the spool.

2. In railway draft rigging, in combination, a

coupler, a yoke, said coupler and yoke being formed with registering slots, a key extending through said slots for connecting said coupler and yoke, said key having a curved, rear edge,

engaged by a correspondingly curved portion on the coupler for permitting angling therebetween, said key increasing in thickness from the front to the rear edge to increase the bearing area between it and said coupler.

3. In railway draft rigging, in combination, a coupler, a yoke, a key generally fiat on both sides connecting said coupler and yoke by passing through registering slots therein, the rear edge of said key having a curved bearing notch and the engaged portion of the coupler being cooperatively curved for permitting horizontal angling of the coupler on the application of draft forces, vertical angling of said coupler on draft being permitted by the front of the key pivoting in the yoke slots, and means connected to the coupler to assist the engaging notch and coupler surfaces for preventing undesired removal of the key.

4. In railway draft rigging, in combination, a coupler with a rearwardly extending shank, the butt of said shank being formed with a vertical spool portion, a yoke, a horizontal draft key extending through registering slots in the shank of said coupler andsaid yoke, said key being notched and the front half of the spool portion on the coupler shank contacting the notched portion of the key, and a front follower engaging the rear portion of said spool and formed with a concave bearing portion curved to correspond with the curvature of rear portion of the spool, the rear portion of the spool being of decreased curvature for increasing the bearing area with respect to the follower.

5. In railway draft rigging, in combination, a coupler, a yoke, a key connecting said coupler and yoke, the engaging surfaces of said coupler and key being curved to permit angling therebetween in the plane of said key on draft, a generally flat front follower disposed between the arms of said yoke rearwardly of said coupler, said follower being provided with a detachable front bearing portion curved in both directions and the butt of the coupler being correspondingly curved and engaging said bearing portion whereby universal angling of the coupler on the application of buffing forces is permitted.

6. In railway draft rigging, in combination, a'

coupler with a rearwardly extending shank, the butt of said shank beingformed with a vertical extending through registering slots in the shank of said" coupler and said yoke, said key being integral and formed with a concavely curved bearing notch in the rear edge thereof, the front part of the spool portion of the coupler shank being convexly curved to correspond with the curvature of the notch and normally nesting therewith to allow angling of the coupler directly about said key, and a front follower with a curved front face engaging a correspondingly curved rear portion of said spool for transmitting bufling forces fromthe coupler to associated cushioning mechanism.

7. In railway draft rigging, in combination, a coupler, a yoke, a key generally flat on both sides connecting said coupler and yoke, said coupler and key having engaging surfaces shaped so as to provide for angling between said coupler and yoke, and means disposed in front of said key and extending through said coupler to assist the engaging surfaces in holding said key in place.

8. Inrailway draft rigging, in combination, a coupler, a yoke, a horizontal key generally flat on both sides connecting said coupler and yoke, said coupler and key having engaging surfaces curved to permit angling therebetween, said key extending through a slot in said coupler with sufficient clearance to'permit said angling, and

'a 'vertical pin partially closing. said slot after surfaces in preventing undesired removal of the latter.

9. In railway draft rigging, in combination, a coupler with a rearwardly extending. shank, the butt of which is formed with a vertical spool portion, a hooded vertical yoke, a horizontal key connecting said coupler and yoke, said key having a concave notch in its rear edge and the front partof the spool portion being correspondingly curved and normally fitting in said notch to allow the coupler to angle with respect to said key, a front follower disposed between the arms of said yoke rearwardly of said coupler, said follower having a forward projection fitting between the side walls of the hooded portion of said yoke, the front portion of said projection being curved substantially spherical, and the rear part of the spool portion of the coupler correspondingly. curved to provide for universal angling thereof with respect to said follower.

10. .In railway draft rigging, a coupler having a horizontal slot with the portions above and below said slot joined by a bearing portion defining the rear end of said slot, said bearing portion comprising a forwardlyfacing convex protuberance, a yoke having arms with slots therein registering with said coupler slot, an integral draft key passing through all of said slots to connect said coupler and yoke, the coupler slot providing sufficient clearance for angling with respect to said key, said key having rearward projections extending on either sideof said bearing portion and defining a concave notch normally seating on said protuberance to provide for horizontal angling of said coupler, and means for partially closing said coupler slot and cooperating with said extensions on said key in preventing undesired removal thereof.

NORMAN B. AKITT. 

